Colorado Environmental Law Journal

Introduction In March 2017, Congress invoked a twenty-one-year-old law—previously used only once—to invalidate a broad swath of late Obama-era regulations. The Congressional Review Act (“CRA” or “Act”), is a once obscure law that now features prominently in the national spotlight.[2] It seems apparent that until recently, few realized exactly how powerful the CRA could be. [3] Before this recent wave, the CRA was viewed as an unduly burdensome and largely useless procedural hoop.[4] Critics of the Act opine that it has little use because it Continue reading →

  Introduction On November 5, 2018, the United States Supreme Court heard arguments for Virginia Uranium, Inc. v. Warren,[2] in which a would-be uranium-mining company challenged Virginia’s thirty-year-old uranium mining ban[3] as preempted under the Atomic Energy Act (“AEA”).[4] The AEA, which governs federal regulation of nuclear materials and technology, expressly exempts uranium mining from control by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (“NRC”), making the preemption argument unlikely on its face. The petitioners nonetheless advanced several variations of their preemption claim, all dependent on a purpose-driven Continue reading →

Indian treaty fishing rights scored an important judicial victory recently when an equally divided U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the Ninth Circuit’s decision in the so-called “culverts case,” which decided that the Stevens Treaties of the 1850s give the tribes a right to protect salmon migration obstructed by barrier road culverts. The implications of that decision on other habitat-damaging activities have yet to be ascertained, but even prior to the resolution of the culverts case there were significant indications that federal, state, and local administrative agencies Continue reading →

“Cui bono?” Cicero As part of the radical transformation of the mineral regime of South Africa, the African National Congress (“ANC”) government introduced the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act 28 of 2002 (“MPRDA”) on May 1, 2004. The MPRDA not only vested mineral resources in the custody of the state but also provided for application of new rights on merit by any applicant. The MPRDA also recognized prospecting rights, mining rights, and mineral rights of the previous mineral law dispensation as old order rights Continue reading →

Introduction In December 2019, the Navajo Generating Station (“NGS”) outside of Page, Arizona closed after nearly fifty years of operation. Commentary has focused on whether a new utility interest, or the Navajo Tribe itself, would take over operation of the plant. This Article, however, will examine what will happen to the 34,100 acre-feet of water used by the plant once the steam turbines stop spinning. The complex history of the generating station, the law of the Colorado River concerning its water use, and the stressed Continue reading →

  Introduction Lakes around the world are heavily impacted by climate change. Droughts, floods, higher water temperatures, changes in biodiversity, and even sea level rise all have an impact on freshwater lakes. In this Article, I look into the question of what legal measures are needed to protect lakes against these impacts with a focus on biodiversity conservation. How can law help to implement the necessary climate change adaptation measures related to biodiversity conservation for lakes? First, I will briefly summarize current and projected climate Continue reading →